The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1887-05-25
TALK OF THIEVES.
The Significance of Slang Terms
Used by Crooks"
The Upper Glasses" Discarding Them-De-
tectives and Their Unsavory Com
panions-Some Warning Signals
Adopted by Bad Citizens.

panions-Some Warning Signals
Adopted by Bad Citizens.
The followers of any profession or oc-
cupation having as a general thing
words and phrases peculiar to their
calling, with meaning more or less OBJ
scure to those not familiar with the
matters. These terms in the case of
the honorable professions are called
technical, but they might, neverthe-
less, be called slang. Slang is, how
ever, the technical language of the
classes who are under the ban of the
law or of public sentiment. Pure slang
originates as general thing among
thieves, gamblers and prize-ighters,
and it has its reason for existence in
the fact that the members of these hon.
orable professions find it necessary to
discuss their operations and affairs so
that outsiders may not understand. The
elevation of the prize-fghter to the po-
sition OF popular favorite, and of
prize-ighting to rank in the field of
sport, has made its slang rather COM
monty Ineligible. Gamblers slang,
too, has been made familiar to every
one through the newspapers. Thieves
slang, however, is not SO gen.
orally understood, for the thief,
as such, desires to be unknown,
and his slang is only effective
among his confreres. The old talk of
the thieves is not so generally used as
it used to be. In fact, slang among
thieves OF eminence in their profession
has died out almost completely, for the
reason that talking slang was soon
found to be means of attracting at
tention-a very undesirable thing to
this gentry. Among the lesser fry the
use OF slang still prevails, but the
meaning OF terms changes more rap
idly than it used to. Time was when
member OF the crooked fraternity could
rattle off five or six sentences entirely
unintelligible, and detectives con-
yersation was a marvel of mysterious
meaning. Slang originating with the
thieves has passed now to the news
boys and young roughs. who use it al
most constantly. Some of it passes In
to use among better-informed people,
but not much, and the greater part of
the lingo" in use to-day among
thieves is as unintelligible to an honest
man as if it was so much Hot
tentot The detectives, if pos
sible, use more slang then thief. and
and they keep up with all the additions
to the rogues' lexicon, for the reason
that it is part of detectives pride to
to understand the talk while the thief
uses his slang only to convey his ideas
sub rosa to his partners, and not as a |
linguistic requirement.
The use of slang by detective was
illustrated not long ago at
the four courts, when one of the local
lynxes was put on the witness stand to
testify as to the arrest of the defendant.
After declaring that the prisoner had
several more or less weird and incom-
prehensible aliases and was bad man,
the prosecuting attorney asked:
"How did you come to arrest himp"
Well" replied the detective, 81
was going down Broadway, and lust in
front spied his nobs.' 'piped' him
awhile, and then he got his lamps on
me and screwed his nut and
Iammed.'"
The foreman of the jury was just on
Inc point of calling for an Interpreter,
when the lawyer translated the de-
Ie c, testimony, explaining that
nus $, nobs" was defendant, that pip
ing was watching, clamps meant
ayes, and that when the man screwed
MS nut and damned" he started to run
away.
ne explanation of case by a de-
ectlve, if printed in his language,
you'd to the general reader look like a
ample of the new language which
ONE crank in Europe has invented for /,
Universal use. In the language of the
hleves all men who violate the laws of
'eum ct tuum, whether by force.
raud or ingenuity, are crooks" but
crooks" are subdivided into ether
lasses. The bank burglar
a gopher" and dip"
wire, STOOL" are the names for a
lckpocket. A '.moll wire" is one who /,
'bs women only, and a very slangy 8
rock might in moment of slang {
lnging enthusiasm substitute for the
'rm another, mol buzzer." A wonl- 7
y Is mol" while boy is always a .
KID If the burglar goes by himself t
Is a ''slngle-footer." A "stall'' is .
ne who watches while burglar works f
engages the attention of visitors q
nile pickpockets are at work. Aman q
an institution selected to be robbed I.
Victlmized is mark; a highway D